REEF: ’93 – ’03 ‘Ultimate Collectors Box Set’
REEF release their complete recorded works in this all-encompassing box set. Spanning across their ten year career, the 9 CD and 1 DVD package features every commercial song recorded, including their very first demo ‘The Purple Tape’ – which lead to the band being signed to Sony – as well as b-sides, demos, live tracks, rarities and previously unreleased and un-heard material. The DVD in-cludes all music promo videos, TV appearances and interviews and some home movie footage capturing the story of this iconic ‘90’s band.
Back when music had more integrity, commercial links seemed to matter more. Bands after music was increasingly being used were cruised by musical newspapers and magazine, Radio also played its part with The John Peel Sow and the Evening Session were heavy influences back in the UK in the 1990’s. Then as many were rocked that CBS had Licensed the ‘Should I Stay Or Should I Go’ leading to grumbled punks softly spoken lost in wonder, with just a hint of the unbelievable ’The Clash had sold put’. No, their label CBS subsidiary of Sony Music.
Into these impressive and crap times, Reef came to prominence in 1994. I remember about some-thing from the South West. The landscape was different in 1993, Brighton was still stewing, ready to explode, the North West, South east and most of Scotland seemed to be dominating UK charts and musical influences with a healthy barrage of Orange, New England and Florida State bands, then there was Seattle and Grunge.
S2 another Sony Subsidiary signed them, first song we heard ‘Place Your Hands’ was of massive proportions – as the Mini Disc stereo recording system was to receive. This was one massive World-wide advertising blitz. The advert featured the newly named Reef as a heavy metal outfit that has their demo thrown out of the window by a faithless A&R man, only for a passing skater to play it – this advert played to millions, was most people’s first introduction to the band, as it was mine. The advert was filmed in New York, which suited, the band sounded American, just as British Indie was continuing to rise, several fellow colleagues could not understand, why this South west band could, “He’s from Wells… bloody Somerset” I remember one drunken ‘colleague’ spitting my way. These days I think the same way I thought then what the hell does it matter where any band have come from.
Luckily, the grunge rock band continued to impress, winning both chart and critical acclaim. Funny these days they just seem so much more alternative, than how I first perceived the British band. After the debut album ‘Glow’ we were convinced. Some sort of collared of The Black Crowes and Free, was the general view arrived by many a publication, with a healthy grunge tinge in the early days.
So 2012, and s REEF’s box-set, not surprised they were good in 1999, but then it at least seemed to me to fizzle out, after the first few years of the century, Musically things were a changing, commercially acceptable in these time if it was not Vodaphone, 3, or by a bank, building society or some other conglomerate, it was the norm for Dandy Warhols, Foster The People.
This 4 or 9 CD set concerns the band’s release from 1993 to 2000 covering a good body of an accessible alternative guitar band. Although my life now made easy with video evidence, which I hope to include with this review. But for the record, the follow up to Replenish, 1997’s ‘Glow’ stormed the UK Charts at Number 1 and included the single ‘Place Your Hands’. In 1999 the band released ‘Rides’ and in the same year the band saw off the likes of Oasis and Pulp to win the Music Industry’s Soccer Six competition. Rides was followed by the poppier sounding ‘Getaway’ produced by Al Clay (Pixies, Stereophonics) in 2000 which was most notable for the single ‘Set The Record Straight’. Always a favourite at shows and Festivals alike, the band made many high profile appearances during this period, including Glastonbury and Reading festivals.
My head back then was more wrapped round Seattle rather than Somerset, hindsight is a wonderful thing. Although I remain with the less commercial form, there is welcomed room, in my tiny world for REEF. 8.5/10
Steve Janes